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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27221509">barking up the wrong tree</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/crimsongothic/pseuds/crimsongothic'>crimsongothic</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>October Writing Challenge 2020 [26]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Bathing/Washing, Dogs, Fluff, Gen, Literal Sleeping Together, Names, Pets, Responsibility, Sleep, Training</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 20:21:43</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,206</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27221509</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/crimsongothic/pseuds/crimsongothic</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>a victim's dog finds its way into the Sawyer family</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>October Writing Challenge 2020 [26]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1948126</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>13</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>barking up the wrong tree</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Day 26: Animal<br/>it's always (insert slasher) turns into a cat this and (insert slasher) gets a cat that. hell, i'm a cat person but dogs need some help in this fandom, so here's this.</p>
<p>based on this textpost:<br/>https://irregularsweater.tumblr.com/post/190129843577/i-always-imagined-bubba-and-choptop-bring-home</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“No. Absolutely not.” When Bubba and Chop Top came in with a victim’s puppy, who supposedly was alone in the car while their owners were dinner, what did they expect their older brother to say? Taking care of a dog is not something Drayton wants on his plate right now, and he knows after a week of play his siblings will get sick of it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“C’-c'mon Drayton, where the hell else is it s-supposed to go?” Chop Top is almost at the point of begging. Damn it, him and Bubba really want this. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not my problem. You two are lucky I haven’t killed it and put it in the cooler for a meal.” Bubba gasps at that, perhaps it was a bit too harsh. “I already have enough to do taking care of you boys, I’m not adding on to that pile.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Y-you won’t have to. Me and B-Bubba will do everything. R-remember his chickens?” If Chop is talking about the birds that Bubba let roam around the house and die by starvation, then yes, Drayton remembers. At least he had a resumé in the pet department, Chop Top has absolutely no experience. Drayton had a dog when he was a boy, long before his brothers were born. He had taken care of it excellently, and it had died at an old age. Nevermind that though, because once again, this isn’t his problem. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chop Top looks desperate. He doesn’t usually have to ask permission for anything, but he knows Drayton wasn’t joking about cooking the thing. Bubba looks like he’s going to cry, the puppy pressed against his chest. They’re both giving Drayton sad eyes. He sighs, not believing what he’s about to do.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fine.” Chop Top and Bubba start to jump up and down, they really hadn’t been expecting to win this argument. Drayton crosses his arms. “As long as it doesn’t get in the way of your work around here.” He interrupts. “And I would like to state that I won’t be helping at all.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s fine Dray, n-no one cares.” Chop Top tells him, already preoccupied with the dog. Bubba is clutching it against his chest a little too hard. “E-ease up Bubba, you don’t want to k-kill the damn thing.” He gets scared, and passes it to Chop, not wanting to hurt it at all. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Chop Top makes a list of names, him and Bubba narrow it down together. They decide on Beast. Drayton finds it ridiculous, but is seemingly the only one that thinks so. Even though the dog is young, it won’t grow much more. It’s already so small, probably a mix of a basset hound and a dachshund, if he had to guess. That doesn’t seem to matter to his brothers, they’re dead set. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Over the next few days, the pair sets out to prove Drayton wrong. They go into town and get a huge bag of dog food, it’ll probably take the thing a year to get through. Chop Top feeds him everyday. Bubba takes him out whenever he scratches on the wall to do so. They play with Beast enough that when the end of the day comes he’s tired out and doesn’t bark at all. Drayton grows to maybe even like the thing, at least enough to not turn away when it begs for scraps of food. Hell, it’s pretty cute when it eats whatever he can afford to give it. At least </span>
  <em>
    <span>he</span>
  </em>
  <span> appreciates Drayton’s cooking.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The only time he gets mad at Beast is when he manages to gnaw his way into Nubbins room. It’s not so much the door that bothers Drayton, just that the dog had gotten into a box full of bones and spilled them anywhere. It was the first time anything had been moved in there since it happened. Drayton yelled at him, but regretted it later. Beast didn’t know any better.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Drayton walks by his food bowl one day to find it empty. Beast never eats his entire days worth before four, so clearly he hadn’t been fed at all. Drayton fills the bowl, and reminds himself to give the boys a stern talking to later. Somewhere in his mind he knows this is the start of them giving up, but he really doesn’t mind. At this point he wouldn’t mind taking sole responsibility for the dog. Chop Top and Bubba are never going to know that though.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He’s able to put on the menacing effect well enough, at least to that Beast gets good care under Bubba and Chop Top for a few more weeks. However the threat wears off again, like it had the first time, and the brothers start to slack in their ability. Drayton slowly but surely takes complete control of the tasks involved with caring for Beast. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Bubba and Chop still play with him, which was a surprise to Drayton. When he expected them to stop taking care of the puppy, he thought it would be altogether. This situation at least has some bonuses, in that Drayton doesn’t think his body could handle tiring a one or two year old dog out. He’ll take him out on walks at least once a week, but even that leaves his old body wheezing at the end of it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>One activity they can do together is tricks. Drayton teaches Beast to sit, shake, roll over, and fetch. If the other brothers ever join in, they set up obstacle courses in the yard. Drayton gets so proud of Beast, he wants to enter him in competitions. Especially so, when he starts to do more complicated tricks. First he learns to stand on his hind legs, he eventually figures out how to walk a few steps on them. Chop Top’s favorite is getting him to play dead. He’s mostly stopped since the one time he scared Bubba with it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A random night comes along in which Beast climbs into bed with Drayton. Before that, he had slept wherever it had been warmest in the house. He didn’t trust the family, especially since they appeared right as his old family had mysteriously done the opposite. This was a sign of confidence, Drayton pulls up the covers to allow him under. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eventually Chop and Bubba grow aware of the fact that Drayton really does care for the puppy, and slack off as much as they’re able. They know they can get away with doing nothing, and they (probably) won’t end up eating him later. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Bath time is different though, as Drayton absolutely refuses. If the boys complain at all, he’ll go on a rant about how getting a dog wasn’t his idea, and that they don’t help at all. Fair points, and ones that shut them up pretty good.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once they’re done, and it does take a while knowing them, Drayton builds a fire. He does so even in summer. Beast will curl up next to Drayton, still wet from being cleaned. Chop Top and Bubba huddle in as well, as they get debatable more soaked than the one in the bath itself. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn’t Drayton’s intention to bring a dog into this house, or get attached to it in any way. In this one instance, trying something new </span>
  <em>
    <span>was </span>
  </em>
  <span>okay.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>i hope you enjoyed! kudos and comments are always appreciated, feedback makes my day!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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